Marvel Rivals just had some big layoffs. Here is everything we know.
Well, it is definitely a weird day for the world of gaming. In an unprecedented and unpredictable moment, the Marvel Rivals Game Director and their entire Seattle-based team were laid off from NetEase. This comes just after the game had an extremely successful launch.
Game Director for Marvel Rivals laid off just months after the game had been released
The gaming world can be fickle at times (most of the time), and we are seeing that today as Game Director, Thaddeus Sasser, who had been working on Marvel Rivals at NetEase since January 2023, was officially laid off.
And not just him, but his entire Seattle-based team was also let go from their jobs.
What's confusing is the fact that Marvel Rivals reported an extremely successful release. In fact, the game earned over $130 million in its first month. Being a free game, this is an incredible feat.
So, were the microtransactions not enough to justify keeping the wonderful team who worked on the game not enough?
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Thaddeus Sasser, Game Director for Marvel Rivals, speaks up following layoffs
Sasser took to LinkedIn today to give his thoughts regarding the layoffs: "My stellar, talented team just helped deliver an incredibly successful new franchise in Marvel Rivals for NetEase Games... and were just laid off!!"
Sasser then continued to speak on behalf of his team, promoting their work and helping to push their names out for jobs looking to hire.
Sasser, however, was not the only person to speak on behalf of himself and his team's work that seems to have been discredited by NetEase out of nowhere. Additional employees who were laid off took to social media to express their thoughts.
"Welp, just got laid off from my job working on Marvel Rivals at NetEase Games," said Jack Burrows on LinkedIn, a former Level Designer for Marvel Rivals. "It was an enormous pleasure to work with my American coworkers who joined me in this culling."
The big question: What is next for Marvel Rivals? The game had already been giving players constant updates. Will those stop? Will the game begin to die? A lot could happen in the coming months and the Game Director and their entire team getting laid off is not a great sign.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for more Marvel Rivals and esports news.
